Ah Christmas

Throughout this rarely-updated, often neglected, never-given-much-thought-of blog the one thing I've commented on most is how I've grown. That's obviously a subject very few people are interested in, that's probably why I have no followers, but I digress. My mother is the kind of mother who likes family traditions and she never really had much as a child so I guess she wanted to give as much as she can to her children. So she sets aside $300 for each of her children for Christmas, not a huge amount of money, but she has six children, the youngest being 21, so it adds up once friends and extended family is included. She also insists that we all make a list of what we wanted her to get us for Christmas with that $300 limit, although my oldest brother and sister are excluded as they are now in their 30's and they just get money unless my mom is feeling extra generous (which she usually does). That sort of negates the need for my siblings to buy gifts for each other since we all know we'll be getting something for Christmas regardless. However we all still try if we have extra money, we usually don't since we all live hand-to-mouth and rarely save for rainy days.
Anyway, recently the items on my list have shifted from toys, collectibles, DVDs, or video games to clothes, something I found incredibly boring when I was younger. for the past four years I've only asked my mom for clothes at Christmas. Honestly I enjoy that, because I rarely buy clothes for myself as my attention is usually shifted to something tech-oriented instead. Oh well I don't know why I thought that story was worth writing down, I feel I should apologize for wasting any reader's time. Oh well..piss off. Oh and happy holidays.

The Biology Club

Being the youngest child in a large family might have had a negative effect on my psychological maturity. That's a nice way of saying that my parents spoiled me, and probably still try to know that I think about it. Back in April, I've been elected for an executive position of a student society at the University I am attending. For the past month I had to deal with the problems that accompany the operations of a large society. Most of last year's executive's have graduated and that leaves the current committee with little experience. I think the stress is mostly affecting the President, as she sees the success or failures of the society as her own, she certainly seems more curt and flustered than usual.
To be honest, I've never really had large responsibilities at any point in my life, and my job is to make sure the student body, of the entire University, knows about whatever event the society hosts. Needless to say, the amount of people who attend these events, hinges on how well I advertise them. Yet I still don't feel stressed about the position I am in, I even enjoy giving public presentations, or speeches. I have always considered myself to be a shy person, maybe I should rethink the whole concept I have of myself.

The Palm Pre Saga

So here's the deal: I live in Canada and the Palm Pre was just released on August 27, I was in line and was the third person to get one. I pay for one, activate it and everything's good, I go home a happy camper. Two days later I notice something amiss with my Pre: the screen is noticeably loose from the slider key-board now I'm a little less happy. I call customer service and they said that I would be able to get a replacement Palm Pre from the store free of charge. Ok good I'll just run down there and get it, I thought. I phone the store and I am informed that the store doesn't allow replacement Palm Pres, so my only option is to have one mailed to me. A little peeved, but I can accept that, it's still free of charge. So I wait a week and the replacement comes to the door, yay, said I, as I happily open the package as if it's Christmas. I turn it on, and what do I see? "Activation Error" the words that I am now oh so familiar with.
At this point I'm a little annoyed, but no big deal, they provide a number to call to tech support to fix such issues. So I use Skype to trouble shoot the problem since I couldn't activate my phone, a tech support guy answers with a predicable foreign accent. I won't go through the intricacies here, but after 4 hours of Skyping later, the man concludes that the electronic message was sent to deactivate the first Pre and that order will take 24 hours to go through. So a whole day without a phone, not good. What can I do? I waited. 24 hours later I try to activate the phone and the same error appears. So I call again, the man tells me this time that my service plan is strangly for a WindosMobile phone. which is odd because my first Pre was working fine before this whole mess. The solution? Call customer service and have the plan switched to a Palm Pre plan, unfortunately today is Sunday and they are closed, they are closed tomorrow too because of Labour day. Oh and I find out that I have to return the first Pre within 5 days or else the "free" replacement turns into "$300" replacement. So now I have two Palm Pres sitting on my desk and neither of them work.
On Tuesday I finally get the chance to call customer service. I wake up right when they open so I can get this mess figured out before I head off to class. So I phone and I get put on hold, than something odd happens: I could swear that they hang up on me. So I phone again, than they put me on hold, and I proceed to hold for two whole hours. After two hours it's too late for me to do anything about it because I have to get to class, so two hours of my life were shot down the drain forever.
After class I phone again and get someone right away, the girl tells me that the plan I am on IS compatible with my Palm Pre. Oh great I waited that long for that precious tidbit of information. So it's off to tech support again. They tell me this time that some electronic transaction did not go through properly, so they will try to force it through. A process which could take up to 24 hours, so I have to wait another whole day. So I wait another day. Predicting something did not go right, I phone tech support without even turning on my phone to check if they fixed the problem. The tech guy confirms my suspicion and indeed nothing has been done with the problem yet. So he says that he'll get it done for me and it'll be done in one hour. So here I sit, one more hour, very annoyed and maybe even a little mad at the phone company I championed for so long (Bell Mobility). Hmm maybe I should have gotten an iPhone..
So I waited the hour, and called the tech guys again before turning on my phone, and the tech guy said that the transaction error has been resolved and that I can go ahead and turn on the phone. I do so and again "Activation error" at this point I'm more than annoyed, even past anger to the point of hopelessness, I'm starting to feel like I'll never have a phone again. So the tech guy than tells me that it's possible that I have a phone that is DOA or "dead on arrival". Meaning that I'll have to get a replacement for the replacement.
This is when Skype decides to drop my call and I have to call again because I haven't gotten a ticket number with which I need to order a replacement Palm Pre to come in the mail (Bell Mobility has no stores in my city, and it is a major Canadian city a Provincial capital even ). I call again and I try to explain the situation to the guy but he tries to troubleshoot the phone again anyway, going through steps I have already went through, he than rests the phone on the network and the process of resetting the phone takes about an hour to go through. So here I am waiting another hour, wishing I had chosen a more competent company to do business with. I haven't been able to keep in contact with friends or family for almost a whole week now. I'm also starting to feel that they don't even care about my situation, and when I break my contract and leave the company, they probably couldn't care less.
I understand that it's this way with almost all large companies, but the customer should never realize this the way I have. It sort of depresses me to be honest.
So I guess the problem stems from the warehouse where my phone originally comes from. Like any large company, not every single device is 100% perfect. Thankfully the tech guy saw this problem before and said that the only solution is to get a replacement. Not a big deal now that I know what the problem is: My phone just doesn't recognize my cell number, which is why it won't activate properly. My new Pre should arrive in 1-2 business days. Pretty fast, so I'm happy that the situation is over with. I hope. I still haven't tried activating the replacement, so we'll see.
I'm happy to report that my replacement activated without incident and I'm very pleased with my phone again. Hmm, strangely I have no grudges against Bell or Palm. Does this mean I'm growing up? or am I just lazy? Oh well.

My Summer

For the past four months I have been away on a magical journey, to the classroom. I was taking Summer classes, and I finished right before regular-session classes start! OH JOY! On a related note, over the Summer I have gotten into wine-tasting. Probably just to combat the urge to kill myself as I watched my Summer slip by from a class room window. However I have gotten a little bored with wine, as the best wine costs more than what my university budget can afford. So I than turned to my first-love: beer. Craft beers and beers from microbreweries to be more precise. I think the same principles of wine-tasting can be used in beer-drinking. Beer can be more than just a way to make a fool of yourself, and I believe that a good beer can be in the same class as a good wine. My first foray into the world of beer-tasting, is accompanied by one of my favorite breweries: Paddock Wood. There is something about their beer that keeps me coming back for more, and it's not just the alcoholism talking. I believe that the best beers come from microbreweries and from the limited-release craft beer collections. My beer is calling me, so until next time you rarely-updated blog you. Cheers!

Useless facts that you need to know Vol. 1

I didn't know what picture to post with this..so here's some cute animals.
1
Look at your zipper. See the initials YKK? It stands for Yoshida Kogyo Kabushibibaisha, the world's largest zipper manufacturer.

2
A duck's quack doesn't echo. No one knows why.

3
40 percent of McDonald's profits come from the sales of Happy Meals.

4
315 entries in Webster's 1996 Dictionary were misspelled.

5
On the average, 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily.

6
Chocolate kills dogs! True, chocolate affects a dog's heart and nervous system. A few ounces is enough to kill a small sized dog.

7
Ketchup was sold in the 1830's as a medicine.

8
Leonardo da Vinci could write with one hand and draw with the other at the same time.

9
Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.

10
There are no clocks in Las Vegas gambling casinos.

11
Leonardo da Vinci invented scissors. Also, it took him 10 years to paint Mona Lisa's lips.

12
Bruce Lee was so fast that they actually had to slow a film down so you could see his moves. That's the opposite of the norm.

13
The original name for the butterfly was "flutterby"!

14
By raising your legs slowly and lying on your back, you can't sink in quicksand.

15
Mosquito repellents don't repel. They hide you. The spray blocks the mosquito's sensors so they don't know you're there.

16
Dentists recommend that a toothbrush be kept at least six feet away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles resulting from the flush.

17
The first product to have a bar code was Wrigley's gum.

18
Michael Jordan makes more money from Nike annually than the entire Nike factory workers in Malaysia combined.

19
Marilyn Monroe had six toes on one foot.

20
Adolf Hitler's mother seriously considered having an abortion but was talked out of it by her doctor.

21
The three most valuable brand names on earth: Marlboro, Coca-Cola, and Budweiser, in that order.

22
To escape the grip of a crocodile's jaws, prick your fingers into its eyeballs. It will let you go instantly.

23
The average person falls asleep in seven minutes.

24
The "pound" (#) key on your keyboard is called an octothorp.

25
The only domestic animal not mentioned in the Bible is the cat.

26
Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated.

27
The average person's left hand does 56% of the typing.

28
Dreamt" is the only word in the English language that ends in "mt".

29
It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.

30
In Chinese, the KFC slogan "finger lickin' good" comes out as "eat your fingers off".

31
A cockroach can live for 10 days without a head.

32
We shed 40 pounds of skin a lifetime.

33
Yo-Yos were once used as weapons in the Philippines.

34
Mexico City sinks abut 10 inches a year.

35
Brains are more active sleeping than watching TV.

36
Blue is the favorite color of 80 percent of Americans.

37
When a person shakes their head from side to side, he is saying "yes" in Sri Lanka.

38
There are more chickens than people in the world.

39
It's against the law in Iceland to have a dog.

40
The thumbnail grows the slowest, and the middle nail grows the fastest.

41
There are more telephones than people in Washington, D.C.

42
The average four year-old child asks over four hundred questions a day.

43
The average person presses the snooze button on their alarm clock three Times each
morning.

44
The three wealthiest families in the world have more assets than the Combined wealth of the forty-eight poorest nations.

45
The first owner of the Marlboro cigarette Company died of lung cancer.

46
Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair.

47
The world's youngest parents were 8 and 9 and lived in China in 1910.

48
Our eyes remain the same size from birth onward, but our noses and ears Never stop growing.

49
You burn more calories sleeping than you do watching TV.

50
A person will die from total lack of sleep sooner than from starvation. Death will occur about 10 days without sleep, while starvation takes a Few weeks.

51
Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying.

52
The Mona Lisa has no eyebrows.

53
When the moon is directly overhead, you weigh slightly less.

54
Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, never telephoned His wife or mother because they were both deaf.

55
A psychology student in New York rented out her spare room to a Carpenter in order to nag him constantly and study his reactions. After Weeks of needling, he snapped and beat her repeatedly with an axe Leaving her mentally retarded

56
"I am." is the shortest complete sentence in the English language

57
Colgate faced a big obstacle marketing toothpaste in Spanish speaking Countries because Colgate translates into the command "go hang Yourself."

58
Like fingerprints, everyone's tongue print is different.

59
"Bookkeeper" is the only word in English language with three consecutive Double letters.

60
Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left handed People do.

61
The sentence "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" uses every Letter in the English language.

62
If the population of China walked past you in single line, the line Would never end because of the rate of reproduction

63
China has more English speakers than the United States.

64
Every human spent about half an hour as a single cell.

65
Each square inch of human skin consists of twenty feet of blood vessels.

66
An average person uses the bathroom 6 times per day.

67
Babies are born with 300 bones, but by adulthood we have only 206 in our Bodies.

68
Beards are the fastest growing hairs on the human body. If the average Man never trimmed his beard, it would grow to nearly 30 feet long in his Lifetime.

69
According to Genesis 1:20-22, the chicken came before the egg.

70
The longest place name still in use is: Taumatawhakatangihangaoauauotameteaturi- Pukakpikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenua---anatahu - a New Zealand hill.

71
If you leave Tokyo by plane at 7:00am, you will arrive in Honolulu at Approximately 4:30pm the previous day.

72
Scientists in Australia's Parkes Observatory thought they had positive Proof of alien life, when they began picking up radio-waves from space. However, after investigation, the radio emissions were traced to a Microwave in the building.

73
Wearing headphones for an hour increases the bacteria in your ear 700 times.

74
More than 40,000 parasites and 250 types of bacteria are exchanged during a French kiss.

75
Men can read smaller print than women, but women can hear better.

76
Coca-Cola was originally green.

77
The most common name in the world is Mohammed.

78
The name of all the continents ends with the same letter that they start with.

79
There are two credit cards for every person in the United States.

80
TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.

81
Women blink nearly twice as much as men!!

82
You can't kill yourself by holding your breath.

83
It is impossible to lick your elbow.

84
People say "Bless you" when you sneeze because when you sneeze, your heart stops for a millisecond.

85
It is physically impossible for pigs to look up into the sky.

86
The "sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick" is said to be the toughest tongue twister in the English language.

87
If you sneeze too hard, you can fracture a rib. If you try to suppress a sneeze, you can rupture a blood vessel in your head or neck and die.

88
Each king in a deck of playing cards represents great king from history. Spades - King David, Clubs - Alexander the Great, Hearts - Charlemagne, Diamonds - Julius Caesar.

89
111,111,111 x 111,111,111 = 12,345,678,987,654,321

90
If a statue of a person in the park on a horse has both front legs in the air, the person died in battle.

91
If the horse has one front leg in the air, the person died as a result of wounds received in battle.

92
If the horse has all four legs on the ground, the person died of natural causes.

93
Question - This is the only food that doesn't spoil. What is this? Ans. - Honey

94
A crocodile cannot stick its tongue out.

95
A snail can sleep for three years.

96
All polar bears are left handed.

97
American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in first-class.

98
Butterflies taste with their feet.

99
Elephants are the only animals that can't jump.

100
In the last 4000 years, no new animals have been domesticated.

101
On average, people fear spiders more than they do death.

102
Shakespeare invented the word 'assassination' and 'bump'.

103
Stewardesses is the longest word typed with only the left hand.

104
The ant always falls over on its right side when intoxicated.

105
The electric chair was invented by a dentist.

106
The human heart creates enough pressure when it pumps out to the body to squirt blood 30 feet.

107
Rats multiply so quickly that in 18 months, two rats could have over million descendants.

108
The cigarette lighter was invented before the match.

109
Most lipstick contains fish scales.

Celebrity Deaths, and Cryogenic Chambers.

Maybe it's because I was born at the end of the eighties. Maybe it's because I was too busy playing outside during my childhood to care. Or maybe it's because of the allegations against him that made me stay away, but Michael Jackson's death didn't really affect me. I of course heard about him, and I listened to some of his music, and there are a couple of his songs that I enjoyed. However at the end of the day when I found out on the news about his death (back in June), I was sort of like: Alright, that's unfortunate, now where's that weather report? I know it sounds callous, but I was just never a Michael Jackson fan, I actually prefer Alien Ant Farm's take on "Smooth Criminal", and have you heard that heavy metal cover of "Beat It" on Youtube? That shit's badass.
To be completely honest, I was more sad about Billy Mays' death, although I have to also admit to never buying any of the products he sold. I have since started calling the "caps lock" key on my keyboard the "Billy Mays key" because when I hit it, it looks like I'M TALKING LIKE BILLY MAYS! Hmmm, what else is terrible? Oh the deaths I am dreading more, are the eventual deaths of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Although at this point I'm pretty sure their technology allowed them to build cryogenic chambers ready for their long slumber into the future when someone creates a cure for old. I am also pretty sure that they are bionic, so maybe all they need is an oil change and they'll run for another thousand years.
But on a serious note, I worry about Apple's future without "Dear Leader" at the helm. I mean their stock went crazy when news about Steve's cancer was leaked, and Microsoft already proved that they could still be Microsoft without Bill in the driver's seat. I sure hope Apple doesn't turn into another Sony.

Indescribably Happy

Today while heading home from class, I met a man who is possibly the happiest man I have ever met. He is not rich, famous, I don't even think he's married. He is a janitor, I gleaned little from the short conversation I had with him. The exchange of words went a little like this:
Me: You seem pretty happy, may I ask why?
Janitor: I will answer your question with a question: why not?
Me: Well without being too rude, you don't exactly have the most glamorous job in the world.
Janitor: How do you know it's not glamorous?
Me: Well it's not very high paying, it's the same everyday, it does not challenge you-
Janitor: - So you're saying that I shouldn't be happy because I don't have the job you want?
Me: Well no, I'm just, umm.
Janitor: Take a look at this (points to a wall)
Me: What? it's a wall
Janitor: It's a clean wall!
Me: Well that spot there isn't really-
Janitor: -I cleaned that wall, ME; I also know that I have to clean this wall again in a week, and again the week after.
Me: (silence)
Janitor: But right now, just look at it, it's clean just like the other walls I washed that are around us, it keeps the image of this hallway uniform, it reflects well onto the image of the University as a whole. There's beauty in that.
Me: I suppose there is some, obscure sense of beauty in a clean hallway.
Janitor: (laughs) You students make a mess of things, I'm the one who has to put things in order again. (walks off)
Now I don't know if this guy is full of BS or not, either way he had a genuine sense of cheerfulness about him. So I guess the moral of the story is that happiness is like a clean wall, wait that doesn't work. Alright so happiness is about seeking a sense of achievement and satisfaction no matter what it is you do, yeah that's it. As far as I could tell, the janitor had no real future outside of being a janitor, he seemed pretty set in his way, yet indescribably happy. Interesting.

The Identity Aspect

Making friends is never an easy thing to do, especially after high school. I would consider myself a well-known a more popular person in high school, whether that thought is a delusion or not I'm not sure. I mean I haven't exactly followed up on my ex-classmates and interviewed them on whether or not I actually was popular, because that's just weird. I wasn't the most athletic person either, I was the smartest in my class so that kind of thing could either make you a nerd/dork/social leper or the cool guy/nerd/social leper. Having the status as "the smart one" works both against you and with you when it comes time to be social with the humans, or plebs, or whatever. People tend to expect certain things about you, and if you don't deliver on those expectations, than what does that make you? Does that mean that the idea people had about you for years, maybe even decades, is totally wrong?
I would argue that, as social animals, we humans all deeply care about how other people view us. It is easy to say "Oh I don't care what people think about me, I do what I want!" But that logic is flawed (if it can even be called logic) because those same people will still be insulted, and hurt by harsh name-calling. Emos for example claim to be "non-conformist" and they tend to do what they want, but is it just me, or does every single emo look and act the same? I mean the make-up is almost like a uniform now. Ironically, for people who claim to be non-conformist they tend to do a lot of conforming. I suppose everybody needs to feel like they belong, which brings me convineintly back to my original topic on friends.
When I finished high school, I went to a university that none of my friends were going to, and taking classes they we not interested in. So over the course of one Summer, I suddently found myself alone in a larger city and I was no longer "the smart one". In fact I totally bombed in all of my classes during my first couple of years in University. I made a few friends, but no one I still have any contact with. I quickly realized that I am not the most special guy in the whole world, I am in fact average, I honestly can't think of one thing that I am exceptional at. I mean come-on look at me, I'm writing in a blog that nobody follows! As I try to come to terms with my own humanity, mortality and identity, I find it kind of depressing to have lost that "tag" I lived with throughout high school years. I recently transferred to another University at a different city, and I thought I would make more of an effort to make friends. But something surprising occurred to me, I realized that hey, I think I'm alright, I don't feel like I need anymore friends right now. I hate to say it but I might have actually grown-up a little, after 21 years it's about time. Although I'm still not letting go of my Legos, because they're kick ass!

No matter what social group you belong to, whether it be Vegetarians, or Feminists, or Creationists, or Environmentalists, or Homosexuals, or Texans. There are going to be three stages of mental distress found in each one. The first stage is composed of the passive members of each group. These are the guys who, for all intents and purposes, are normal, rational, and likable people. They "just happen" to be a creationist, or they "just happen" to be vegetarian, or they "just happen" to be Texan. These are the cool guys, they are tolerant and won't try to force their backward militant beliefs onto you. Although for some strange reason, it's the normal, friendly guy who always turns out to be a murdering psychopath, go figure.
Unfortunately the cool tolerant guy probably won't be around for too long. They start to think: "Hey, I'm a vegetarian so more people should be one too!" and that's when the shitshow begins. Enter the second stage of mental distress: the Moderate. The moderate had some time to look around and see all the problems in the world. They then come to the absurd/retarded/batshit insane conclusion that all the problems will go away if everybody was "just like me". That's when they start harassing their friends, neighbors and loved ones about how wonderful and freeing it is to be a feminist or Texan. Not realizing the hypocrisy they are committing by being the one trying to convert, and suppress the regular members of society. Thankfully at this stage they are easily ignored and they are easily drowned out by turning up the radio during the kick-ass guitar solo in Freebird.
Once they realize that their nagging isn't getting anyone converted/de-brained, they slowly slide into the third stage or mental distress: the Activist/Retard. There is no reasoning with the activist, they have no shame, no scruples, no soul, and no reflection. To an activist no opportunity is too small to voice their opinion, whether it be during a shouting match at Christmas which makes mom cry, or in a drive-thru when I'm trying to get my damn burger. Either way, as long as they get the last word in, they walk away thinking they've won. Ironically seeing an activist chain themselves to a tree, kind of makes me want to chop that tree down even more. Seeing activists assaulting seal hunters just makes me want to club that furry bastard even more. So who do you trust? The normal people who end up being murdering pedophiles? Or the activists who are certifiably insane? It doesn't matter, either way the Universe will collapse in on itself rendering everything we have ever done or will do in the future redundant and pointless. Cheerio!

Shopping Woes

I just had probably one of the most frustrating experiences while trying to order an item online. The item in question is the new Viliv S5, there was a special pre-order event for online purchases only, going on over at dynamism.com . I was not the only person trying to buy this device, as a result dynamism's site was slowed to a crawl. It was actually much worse than a crawl, it was as if a caterpiller had all it's legs broken, and it was trying to climb a mountain, which is covered in broken glass, and fire, and nuns with rulers are beating it. As I was trying to purchase the item, everytime I hit the 'continue' button to carry on with the order process either the network timed out, or the session expired both of which caused me to start the whole process over, it even logged me out of their system. By the time I thought things were running faster, I realized that the 200 items set for pre-order were all gone. Being Canadian I'm usually rather reserved and calm, but at that moment I wanted to drive to Chicago and strangle Dynamism's owner, and his family, and I'll probably key his car and kick his dog on my way out too.
My main complaint is this: If you own a company that sells things, and you run a website where you sell these things from, and you have customers who are willing to literally throw money at you for your things, and that website actually STOPS these people from throwing that money. Than you have SERIOUS problems! I was willing to actually spend more money on accessories so I was probably spending more than most people. I don't know what dynamism is up to, but they KNEW they had a popular device in their hands, yet they just didn't think ahead and spend that extra money on more servers. I spent over 2 hours trying to purchase that damn device and I damn near gave up too. Now I realize that it was all just a waste of my time. I'm very disappointed, because dynamism looks like they have some cool stuff for sale, if only their system didn't totally suck balls.

Choose Your Poison

When I was younger, the first computer I have gotten my hands on was an old Macintosh computer. Admittedly I was not aware of the existence of other computer hardware or software, I was very young and I guess I just wasn't interested in such things. After a while my youthful energy lost interest in computers until my sister got a iMac G3 for when she went to University. Living in the country meant that internet wasn't readily available and I think that cut me off from that part of the world for a rather large portion of my life. I don't think I really actually dived into internet culture until I myself left for my first year of University.
Although the computers my family have purchased were mostly made by Apple, I never really considered myself attached to that particular brand. I think I made the jump over to Microsoft in 2001, when Windows XP was released, my high school computer teacher liked to use XP for her courses. Interestingly my high school has multiple computer labs running both Windows and OSX depending on which computer lab you walked into. I'm not sure if this is the norm for high schools everywhere since I rarely ventured out of my own high school. So by the time I Graduated I was well versed in how to use both operating systems, which makes me rather indifferent over which one I use.
I never really realized how polarized people are over which OS they chose to use, and I find myself in the middle, both indifferent and curious over both of them. Since graduating high school, I have been using XP, then upgraded to Vista and Windows 7. I recently installed OSX into my netbook just to bring everything full-circle, seeing as how I began my computer facination with Apple. Now I have Windows 7 and OSX running, each one on a different laptop on my desk, and to be honest, I don't see why people are polarized. In the end, they are both productivity and entertainment tools, and I personally think that to get the most out of the technology revolution, you must use and enjoy both of them.
Fanboys have their tastes and I think it's stupid to worship and stirctly adhere to one specific brand. From what I seen in forums and and other message boards, Fanboys are not very kind people, they sort of remind me of religious zealots. I wonder when Apple or Window's fanboys will start harassing people on the streets just like how Jehova's Witnesses or Mormons do. Relax guys, they are just computers, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are not Gods so stop worshipping them and start thinking for yourselves again. You must excuse me now, for I hear the siren-call of Linux, so I guess I'll go out and drop another $400 on a netbook to see what all the commotion is about with the adorable Penguin.

On Finding Happiness. (here's a hint: It's been there all along)

Happiness is the most sought after of emotions to achieve in a person's life. Whenever you ask someone what they want in life, the answer is most commonly "happiness". Being happy isn't always possible, and when it is achieved, I find that it is a fleeting emotion. I find that I am more comfortable with my station in life rather than flat out happy. I don't even think that I would even want to feel happiness for a sustained amount of time, because it's tiring being chipper all the time. Even though happiness is so sought after, I noticed that people are increasingly less happy and less patient with every little thing in life.
Today's society is a technology-driven society that seems to be having a negative effect on people's emotional health. Take, for example, and airplane: People don't seem to see how amazing it is, all they do is complain about the service, the food, the lack of room, etc. Don't they understand that they are sitting on a chair in THE SKY???!! cell phones,HDTV, blue tooth headphones, even computer mice, are all amazing devices if you stop to think about them. Yet it all seems to be lost on people, nobody is happy and yet we're surrounded by these incredible devices that make better and easier.
I recently learned that with our technological advances in how we live, allow us to enjoy the productivity of 1200 people. That's with washing machines, water purifiers, ovens, email, furnaces, and lighting in our homes. Think about it, we are essentially living like royalty, even in low-income homes, yet nobody is happy. If you're unwilling to be happy (and yes it is up to the individual whether to be happy or not) than at least be comfortable, just think about it.

Digital Pirates

With the trial with The Pirate Bay making a mockery of the justice system, the support for the those who run the website has only grown as the trial goes on. The entertainment industry doesn't understand the culture they are attempting to attack, it's one rooted in people's rebellious nature. People will always strive to get more for less, and nothing's better than getting stuff for free. I can understand that the artists and programmers should be paid for the work they put into their pieces of software or music. However I'm not a digital artist or a sound mixer, so I'll never pay hundreds of dollars for a program that I might use only once. The way I see it, they will never profit from me anyway since I am unwilling to pay for the expensive software, so what's the harm in downloading the torrent when I have to use the software only once or twice?
Even IF The Pirate Bay is taken down, even IF ISPs are logged and carefully monitored, piracy in the digital age will always exist. People will find ways to share information and software, hackers will always be around finding ways to distribute that kind of information. I think that sites like The Pirate Bay are not a threat in any way to anybody, the effort is better aimed at hackers who create dangerous viruses. Pirates have always existed in one form or another, whether they be trading drugs, buried treasure, or computer files, pirates are here to stay.

Valentine's Day 2.0

Valentine's Day has come and gone, down come the over-priced flowers, chocolates, and jewelery. Maybe next year I'll talk my girlfriend into accepting those kinds of gifts the day AFTER Valentine's Day. It's a day that some people love and others hate, it is also one of the most lop-sided days of the whole year. I mean, where's MY gift? Sure there's a big payoff at the end of the day, but I don't get anything tangible to actually eat or use. I'm sure there are couples who go out and buy each other gifts to profess their undying affection for each other, but I have no need for flowers, and chocolates don't interest me either. I could use a new wireless mouse, or SD card for my camera however.
It would be great if Valentine's day could be turned into a "generic gift day" although you may have to work on the name a bit. I think that the most romantic gift would have to be anything I will use often, that way the money isn't wasted, and I get something that is actually useful, aren't I romantic? I have an ipod, but the zune intrigues me, I would also liked to have gotten an eBook reader or a new comfy office chair. In a technology oriented world, I'm pretty sure that gifts like the ones I mentioned will become more common. Personally, I think nothing says undying love quite like a Spy Camera Video Watch http://www.thinkgeek.com/gadgets/watches/b550/
Ahh love...

Conquering Stress

As I am writing this, I have my midterms to study for and labs to prepare for, I imagine that a lot of students are feeling stress and are not sleeping well (if at all). However I don't seem to feel that same level of stress as many other students do. I could probably be doing better in one or two of my classes, but I don't feel like my world is crumbling around me just because I don't have a book open at the moment. I do feel a certain amount of stress, but nothing that would force me to stay up all night to study for a test.
Stress is nothing more than chemical and electrical signals interpreted by your brain. Therefore it is reasonable to say that stress can be controlled if you change the way you think, and how you respond to that stimulus. I believe fear can be conquered in the same way. I have a spoke to someone earlier who does relatively dangerous work on a day-to-day basis. He told me that he doesn't push fear out of his mind, instead he embraces it and lets the adrenalin help him do his job. Anybody will tell you that stress is a very good motivator, however it's side effects on one's health means that it's not a very good performance enhancer. Regardless of what it's side effects are, everybody feels stress, and I do mean everybody, from the five year-old to the 80 year-old.
Instead of trying to lie in order to convince yourself in believing that stress doesn't effect you, embrace the stress and allow it to motivate you into doing your job or to finish that last project.

Individual Segregation.

Throughout my travels I have come to realize that people tend to follow another person's advice more often than to rely on their own judgment. Being part of a group increases your chances for survival so it's no wonder we seek out a place to "belong". However, a group mentality can easily skew your judgment and a normally rational person's way of thinking is altered. I For instance belong to a family group, and I thought about growing my hair out, I've always wondered what it would feel like to have long hair. I mentioned this to my mother, who then said that long hair just "didn't suit me". I then found myself agreeing with her and telling myself that "she's probably right", not out loud of course because that's just crazy. Probably not the most insidious piece of advice, but I was surprised how quickly I was willing to follow that advice.
I have moved around from place to place more often than a lot of other people I know. In the last four years I lived in five different places, not really enough time to settle and make friends. I only see the people I truly consider friends during long holidays because they live far away. Although I know a lot of people from my classes, but I really don't see them as friends. So I really don't adhere to the group mentality simply because I don't have a group. I don't think this is a bad thing, because I believe that human intelligence goes down as the number of individuals in any group goes up.
People in a group tend to believe the same things, act the same way, own the same items, have the same hobbies. It's a paradox to consider yourself an individual when you also consider yourself a member of any group. You cease to become an individual once you are a part of that group, you start to identify yourself according to that group. I think it is more healthy to consider yourself an individual who happens to spend time around groups. That way you can receive advice while keeping your judgment your own, and you won't find yourself pressured to adhere to any type of group mentality.

On Being Unique

Comic books, collectibles, and technosexuals, used to be shunned and seen as odd, different, and other synonyms. Just within my short lifetime geek culture has exploded and those things that used to be shunned for being "uncool" is suddenly the cool thing to be into. Alright, maybe technosexuals have yet to become officially accepted, but I don't care what anybody says, Cylon 6 is smoking hot and I'd definitely download my programs into her software, and install a rootkit to access the backdoor. Yeah.
I mentioned earlier that my family was not too tech savvy when I was younger. However I'm pretty sure that my parents went a little out of their way in order to buy me the toys I wanted, thanks mom. Some toys I had and liked the most, were some original Batman figures, Star Wars figures, and Legos. If I had known that some of those toys would be worth more than my car, than maybe I wouldn't have pitted Boba Fett against Batman in a death match with the loser meeting his destiny in the microwave.
What I'm trying to get at, is that "geek" culture is now mainstream and the market is flooded with every kind of merchandise that is only aimed at getting my money. Maybe it's not entirely a bad thing, however nothing feels UNIQUE anymore and somehow that makes me feel less unique.

Don't Have Confidence? Than Fake It.

The other day I was walking through the halls of the University and I decided to ask random girls some more random questions. The question I asked them this time was "What is the most attractive trait a man can have?" Almost every girl I talked to said that confidence is probably the most attractive trait a man can have, with humor being a close second. Although some of them obviously mentioned more shallow desires associated with a man's body. Interestingly I found that that the younger the girl is the more common those shallow answers were, the age range was 17-23. About 5% didn't know what the word "trait" meant, yeah.
I am not the most confident person in the world, I happen to be quiet and shy. However, I make it a point to always make eye contact and when I talk I try to make the words come out smoothly with no "uhhs" or "umms". Strangely I'm not afraid of public speaking, I can talk to 100+ people fine, but get me in a room with ten or twelve people and I shut up. I think I'm low on the shyness scale, I don't have anxiety about meeting new people, I actually enjoy it. It just takes me some time to open up.
Humor is another story, I like to make people laugh, and using my awkwardness and wit seems to work and I am able to make people laugh enough. I use dry/sarcastic humor, and self-depricating humor as well. Although recently when I was meeting a friend's girlfriend, I actually made the poor girl cry by being dry and sarcastic. My other friend said that she was too sensitive, which made the girl cry even more. So it was a vicious cycle. They're still together, although I'm pretty sure that meeting will go down as one of the worst all-time first impressions. I don't think it could get much worse than making a girl cry when you first meet them.

The Latest and Greatest (For the Time Being)

Technology is constantly changing, and that is one of the things I love about it. I can't wait to see what's coming around the corner, what new application will be made, what new gadget will be put into production. I have recently talked about how technology is controlling people's lives, well I say dive in and swim because we live in a tech world. I also mentioned how my Gateway laptop is a spine twister weighing in at 9.3lbs and with its' 17inch screen. Even at that it's still way more portable than my old desktop with it's tower and separate screen. So I have been on the lookout for a smaller more portable computer just to take with me to my classes, nothing too powerful, but it has to have a good keyboard.
After some research and a very good marketing campaign by Sony, I have found the answer to my portable computer problems: the Sony P-series computers. It's not the perfect computer, it does have some flaws, however, it's damn sexy and very portable. It does not have very good hard drive space, but it can be upgraded to a solid state hard drive, coupled with Google's online storage, and I have the perfect solution. What I love about the P Series is that the whole device is built around the keyboard to maximize ease of use and comfort while typing. http://reviews.cnet.com/laptops/sony-p-series-lifestyle/4505-3121_7-33485561.html?tag=rnav
A smart phone is also a item I have been searching for, the iPhone does not really appeal to me, since I live in Canada, and their network is garbage up here. The Blackberry has been under my eye for quite some time, until the Palm Pre showed up. http://ces.cnet.com/8301-19167_1-10137746-100.html. It's on a reliable network, and it has everything I could want in a phone, including copying and pasting(damn you iPhone). I'm addicted to technology, and it's the most wonderful feeling in the world, having the world at your fingertips, being constantly connected is the way of the future.

Paradigm Shift

Technology, it's what drives today's society, industry, research, and it even controls our lives. The large majority of people cannot be without their cell phone, and the number of internet users will only grow and grow. I am not impervious to the allure of it, and recently I have found myself with some of the latest technology to hit the shelves. It is very easy to be overwhelmed with the amount of options available to consumers when they try to decide on what device is right for them. However I think it is wonderful to have such a wide array of options, because that allows people to get the perfect device for them.
When I was growing up, my family did not have that many gadgets around the house, I even remember using a rotary phone with that rotating dial, we had that up until I was about five or six. My parent's house still has dial-up internet, although the fact that the house is out in the country might be a factor in that. When I was a teenager, I got my first computer, it was an average computer I still have it although I don't use it that often. It is a traditional style computer with the large tower and separate screen. However I think the end of large desktop computers is almost at its' end, at least for me it is. I have recently bought a laptop that is built to be a desktop replacement, it's a Gateway P-7811FX it has everything I need and more. It's much more portable than my old desktop, however it is still a large beast compared to other laptops tipping the scale at 9.3 lbs and with a 17 inch screen. I did a lot of research before I purchased it, with information supplied from sites like CNET
I love technology, and I believe that human evolution will no longer be subject to the whims of Mother Nature, it is almost time that we take control of our own genetic make-up and augment ourselves with technology. I argue that we are already augmenting ourselves and our abilities with it, but at what cost?

Fears

What follows is a list of the ten most common fears in North America:
1. Speaking in public

2. Snakes

3. Confined spaces

4. Heights

5. Spiders

6. Tunnels & bridges

7. Crowds

8. Public transportation (especially planes)

9. Storms

10. Water (as in swimming and drowning, not drinking)

I myself am not afraid of any of the listed fears. Which is good because every one of the above items are relatively common in today's society especially crowds and public transportation. I jokingly tell people that my main fear are bears with uzis which makes them the ultimate predator. However on a serious note, my fear is that I wont achieve my goals in life. I want to be able to benefit society in a positive way. I have to do well in my classes in order to actually become a doctor and then I'll be able to help people in a more direct way.

The Two Most Important Qualities Every Person Should Have

When I was at the university, I asked some random people: What two qualities should every person posses? although the answers were varied, one did stick out: Loyalty. In all honesty it was mostly women who gave that answer more often than men. I don't think loyalty is as important as women like to think it is, although I'm pretty sure they are thinking about the most wanted qualities in a mate, where I'm talking about the general population of the planet. I mean North Korean troops have loyalty, so did Nazi troops. So for the general population, loyalty is not as good a trait as most people would like to think.
I think the two most important qualities any person should have are: Compassion, and Ambition. Compassion is the ability to feel for others, to actually want to relieve the pain of others. Ambition makes a person want to achieve greater goals, greater heights of achievement. Although ambition is a trait most often coupled with a person's lust for power, it is also a vital part of day-to-day decision making. A homeless person can be compassionate, however that homeless person would not have the ability or opportunity to demonstrate that compassion for the benefit of society. Ambition can be used for evil, but when coupled with compassion, than it can be used to greatly benefit society.

Presidential Inauguration

The Presidential Inauguration has never held very much interest for me since I am Canadian. However I feel that Barack Obama, is a very exceptional man. I find it curious that even I am excited about this President, and I hope he is able to repair the damage that President Bush has done to the reputation of the United States. At the same time, I musn't get my hopes rise too high, because Barack Obama is still human, and he will make mistakes and all the problems North America has, won't just go away overnight. Unfortunately I think that most people have the idea that everything will just magically get better, but it won't. Hard work is needed and it will probably take two years before some real progress is seen at the public level. 2009 will still be a disappointing year, all that aside, history was made today, and one question you should be able to answer is: Where were you when on Inauguration Day when Barack Obama became the 44th President of the United States?
I was at home, watching the entire inauguration and loveing every second of it.

On Campus

Yesterday was Sunday, and I decided to go to school. on the expressly to take pictures. I could never find pictures of my university online or anywhere else so I decided to take some a post them here. Since it was Sunday, there was not a lot of people around to get in the way, a professor even gave me roof access on one of the taller buildings on campus. I never really gave much thought to the trees or the general scenery of the campus, until I purchased my camera. Now I see photographic possibilities in almost everything I see, it's like I am seeing the beauty in the world for the very first time. I never really thought I'd be the photographer type, but than again I never thought I'd be the type who writes in a blog. I can't draw or paint, and my guitar skills still need a bit of polish before I even think about posting videos of myself playing. So I suppose photography is something people drift to naturally, since anybody can do it. All I need to do now is learn how to use Photoshop effectively in order to give my pictures that little bit of other-worldly feel. I took over 150 pictures, but I posted some of my favorites with a couple of the larger ones thrown in.

The Holiday that Never Ends

The holiday season has always been the holiday that starts two months early and ends long after December. For some people, the holiday season never ends and they keep their decorations up all year long. No other holiday has that kind of hold, Valentine's Day lasts only one day, so does Thanksgiving and Halloween. I don't mind the colourful lights and the decorations in the malls, but they'll start to grind on my nerves if they stay up until February.

A Walk in the Sun

While out on my walk, I never really noticed how much nature is in the city if you know where to look for it. I have only been here in the city for a short amount of time, and it is only now, since I have a good camera, that I am truly appreciating it.

Embrace the Sun

Waking up this morning I quickly realized that I was groggy from the relative lack of sleep from the night before. Still it was morning and I knew I had to rise with the Sun or else my internal clock would become unbalanced. Pouring myself a bowl of cereal and watching some Saturday morning cartoons, I noticed that the dark brooding thoughts I had yesterday evening were completely gone. The amount of sunlight seemed to have a psychological effect on me and I was much more cheerful than I was in the evening. Once I finished my bowl of cereal I decided that it was time for another long walk in the sun.

My Own Time Machine

When I was younger, I thought that I wanted to be an astronomer, because my fondest memories of when I was growing up was when I went outside late at night and looked up at the stars in the sky. Whenever I looked up at the night sky, my entire field of view was consumed by the billions of stars. Growing up in the country meant that the air was always clean and the view was not obscured by pollution so I was able to see everything. Me and my siblings would try to count how many shooting stars and satellites we could see. I don't think I'll ever be able to move too far away from the country. In places like New York or London, the pollution prevents a lot of people from enjoying the kind of view of the stars that I grew up looking at.
Since the light of distant stars takes longer to reach Earth, than the further away you look, the further back in time you go. The light from some of those stars in the sky, took billions of years to reach us here, and some of those stars don't even exist anymore, yet they shine on until the last of their light reaches us. It's like having your own time machine.

Deep thoughts in the deep snow

Today I decided to not go to my classes, I only had two for today and I already read ahead in my books so I already knew what the professor was going to say. So I decided to sleep in and relax for the day. I then decided to drive to the countryside for a walk later in the day. As I was out there in that field alone with the winds and snow, I forgot about all my normal day-to-day worries. I concentrated on the soft crunching of the snow under my boots, and sight of the Sun setting on the horizon and I let my mind wander freely. I don't know why, but as I stood there looking at the Sun set, I thought about what I would do if my parents and siblings were to die suddenly. I have always been close to my family, and now I find myself living in a city that is far away from all of them and I miss them constantly. If they were to die, than I'd be depressed, angry and I think I'd be lost without them.
I then thought of what other people must go through when they lose a loved one. The closest thing I could imagine is a feeling of complete loss that hits you in the bottom of your stomach and gnaws away at all the things that makes a person smile. I thought to myself: Which sibling would I be able to live without? I could not make that decision, each one of them is special to me. Finally I thought that everybody's time on Earth is limited and everybody WILL die, I will die, we ALL will absolutely die.
Just like the today's setting Sun, we all will meet our end, and it will always be ugly it will always be painful, whether by some accident, disease or the slow decay of time. Yet the more I thought of death, the less I feared it. It is one of the most natural things in the world and the only thing that matters is HOW we will be remembered. Will I be remembered? Or will I be forgotten? I then started to walk back to my car, and continue my life.

First post, first blog.

The last time I kept a journal of any kind was back in grade school, because back then it was a mandatory part of the school day. The teacher would take the last ten minutes of the class day, and have us students write in our journals, usually the teacher gave us a vague guideline, such as "what do you have planned for the summer?" or "what career do you see yourself going into?" That sort of stuff. Eventually I thought of the idea of keeping a journal as equal to how a girl keeps a diary, so I saw the idea of writing down your feelings and ideas down on paper as feminine, so I stopped doing it. I lived my life up until this moment where I find myself writing my thoughts and feelings down, not on paper, but as data to be stored online. Somehow the idea of writing down your feelings is not so strange or "feminine" as I thought in my teenage years.
So here I am, it's late in the morning approximately 2:10 am on a Friday, and I have class at 8:30 am. Why am I writing in this blog so late(or early) in the morning? It's because I feel that the amount of thoughts and ideas running around in my head, is causing me to become less focused in my day-to-day activities. I have to unload some of this baggage somewhere, and I thought a blog would be a good place to store it. I spent no more than 15 min customizing my blog, and it's still crude and empty as I'm writing this, but that will change. I have plans to post some of my pictures, because digital photography is fascinating and I want to be able to store them beside my thoughts and ideas here on this blog. My goal is to write at least once a day and I have a feeling that this post will be among my longest, because in this one, I have to explain to myself WHY I am here making this blog, and WHAT I plan on doing with it.
I'm not sure if anybody will ever read this, I'm not even sure if I myself will read it again and that is alright, the blog would have served it's purpose and that's all I need.

Current Emotional state: Anxious - I need sleep, and the blog isn't customized yet
Current Physical state: Healthy - a little cold and hungry
Current Thought: "I have to study more"
Current goal for the day: Get some Sleep, go to classes, play my guitar
Current goal for the week: update the blog daily, keep up in my classes and labs.